BLUE ECOLOGY IS A PATHWAY TO WATER RECONCILIATION: “We need to measure progress in different ways. We are not going to measure Water Reconciliation in a year-end report because it is about a mindset change,” stated Richard Boase, moderator of of the Watershed Moments 2023 documentary video released on World Rivers Day 2023
Note to Reader:
Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on September 26, 2023 announced release of the Blue Ecology video documentary titled Watershed Moments 2023: A Pathway to Water Reconciliation and Resilience at the Local Scale.
Blue Ecology offers HOPE and removes the FEAR
In early 2023, Richard Boase had an epiphany while waiting for a group of engineering students to join him for a walkabout along Lynn Creek in North Vancouver. As fate would have it, a Coast Salish elder chanced to show up just as Richard was contemplating what wisdom he would share with the students. They struck up a conversation
“For 30 years, I have used only Western science in my efforts to make changes in water resources. For the most part, I have not been successful,” stated Richard Boase, Partnership Vice-President and moderator of the Watershed Moments Series, when he shared his story with the elder.
“I asked the elder what can I do differently? By viewing everything around us in the natural world as having spirit, and having a personality and a purpose in how it relates to the people who live on the land, you are starting and charting on the right path, the elder explained.”
“This was a really, really profound moment for me. Literally 10 minutes later, here I am talking to over 30 young students about a project in which we are hoping to create a wetland and redirect some water coming out of a storm outfall system.”
“All of a sudden, it just dawned on me to ask the students this question: If we were able to redirect this runoff away from going directly into this creek and create a little wetland series along the side of the floodplain, what do you think might happen?”
“We got all kinds of answers from the students. That is when it dawned on me that this example illustrates what Blue Ecology is looking to instill in the people who have a future professional role to play related to water.”
“And that prompted me to make an observation about what is going to happen. If we redirect water into a wetland, life is going to happen. And life is going to create itself simply by the act of putting this water into this environment and letting it interact with the soil, the plants and everything around it.”
“It will create life with little or no help from us.”
TO LEARN MORE:
To read the complete story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia; Blue Ecology offers HOPE and removes the FEAR.
